Visual Discourses of Commemorative War Monuments
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Visual and Written Discourses of British Commemorative War Monuments N. Gillian Abousnnouga Cardiff School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies Cardiff University This thesis is submitted to Cardiff University in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy March 2012 Abstract This thesis analyses commemorative war monuments using a social semiotic approach to understand how they communicate as three-dimensional objects, considering their design alongside contextual information. Taking a social semiotic approach to the study of commemorative war monuments, it responds to calls by historians for innovative ways to study war commemoration by providing an approach that offers both specific analysis of the objects and attends to matters of design. This thesis also provides a contribution to the work in Critical Discourse Analysis on discourses of war through its analysis of the way that certain dominant discourses of war are realised, maintained and legitimised; not just through political speeches and news texts, but visually and materially through these objects that appear in cities, towns and villages across Britain. Following in the relatively recent tradition of multimodal analysis, the thesis draws on the ideas of Kress & van Leeuwen, adapting and extending their theories to the analysis of typical examples of post-First World War British commemorative war monuments. The analysis reveals that sign makers rejected modern forms, relying on classical styles of representation to realise meanings which serve to recontextualize the brutality of war. These monuments contain powerful discourses of denial that work to promote the sacrifice of life by creating a strong, ethnically homogenous and consentient national group that acts uniformly to carry out the will of the nation-state. The theoretical framework has enabled identification of the semiotic materials and modes that carry these consistent, persistent banal messages of nationalism within commemorative war discourses which serve to shut down the possibility of having wider conversations about the negative nature of war and its effects on a nation’s soldiers and on its civilians. Key words: War; Commemoration; Monuments; Social Semiotics; Multimodality; CDA; Nationalism. DECLARATION 1: Over the course of this research aspects of the findings have been co- published with my supervisor, Dr. David Machin. These publications are listed below: Abousnnouga, G. and Machin, D. 2008, 'The Visual Institutionalization of Discourses in War Monuments', In, Mayr, A. Language and Power, London, Continuum, Ch.6:115-137 Abousnnouga, G. and Machin, D. 2010, Analysing the Language of War Monuments, Visual Communication, 9. (May):131-149 Abousnnouga, G. and Machin, D. 2010, 'War Monuments and the Changing Discourses of Nation and Soldiery', In, Jaworski, A. and Thurlow, C. (eds.) Semiotic Landscapes, London, New York, Continuum International Publishing Group, Ch.10:219-240 Abousnnouga, G. and Machin, D. 2011, The Changing Spaces of War Commemoration: a Multimodal Analysis of the Discourses of British Monuments, Social Semiotics, 21 (2):175-196 Abousnnouga, G. and Machin, D. 2011, Visual Discourses of the Role of Women in War commemoration: a Multimodal Analysis of British War Monuments, Journal of Language and Politics, 10 (3):322-346 DECLARATION 2: This work has not been submitted in substance for any other degree or award at this or any other university or place of learning, nor is being submitted concurrently in candidature for any degree or other award. Signed ……………………………………(candidate) Date ………………………… STATEMENT 1 This thesis is being submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of ………………………… Signed …………………………………… (candidate) Date ………………………… STATEMENT 2 This thesis is the result of my own independent work/investigation, except where otherwise stated. Other sources are acknowledged by explicit references. The views expressed are my own. Signed …………………………………… (candidate) Date ………………………… STATEMENT 3 I hereby give consent for my thesis, if accepted, to be available for photocopying and for inter-library loan, and for the title and summary to be made available to outside organisations. Signed …………………………………… (candidate) Date ………………………… Acknowledgements Many people have supported me throughout the process of this research, I would like to acknowledge and thank some of them here. Thank you to staff at the public libraries in Mountain Ash and Merthyr Tydfil, Merthyr Borough Council, the Glamorgan Records Office, the UKNIWM in London, present and ex-council members in Wootton Bassett and the Merchant Seamen’s Association representatives in South Wales. Two academics have helped me immensely: Professor Theo van Leeuwen and Dr David Machin. Professor van Leeuwen introduced me to the world of social semiotics whilst he was at Cardiff University; he inspired and encouraged me to explore my interests through the social semiotic lens. Having decided to embark on the research path, I could not have asked for a more supportive supervisor than David. He has carefully guided me through this task with his infinite enthusiasm, patience and generosity. I would like to thank my family and friends who have been extremely supportive. Firstly, to my partner F, who has given me immeasurable emotional, practical and motivational sustenance throughout the process. Also, my friends J, R and T who have held my hand and have always managed to find the perfect motivating sentence at just the right time. Finally, to my dad who, sadly, will not see the finished product. He often accompanied me on trips to collect data, regaling me with his humorous tales of wartime exploits on foreign seas and shores - although he thought he had fooled me, he never succeeded in completely hiding his pain. Contents 1. Introduction: Page 1 2. Literature Review: Page 20 Approaches to the analysis of war commemoration Readings of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Limitations of the approaches discussed so far Commemorative war monuments within the national context The tradition of commemoration and the function of commemorative war monuments: for spirit and nation Summary 3. Theoretical Approach: Page 63 Introduction Semiotics, Saussure and the sign Social semiotics Ideology Specific tools that are used in the social semiotic multimodal critical discourse analysis of the data Historical context Panofsky: Iconography and iconology Barthes: myth, denotation and connotation Bodily poses Metaphorical association Angles and height Materiality and colour Further points to consider when analysing three-dimensional objects Hallidayan-inspired tools Speech acts and gaze Agency, action and behavioural processes Written text: Assumptions Critical discourse analysis Reflections on the theoretical approach adopted in this thesis 3.1 Practical Issues: Page 113 The Data and its Collection Non-utilitarian commemorative war monuments UKNIWM database Locations Official records Ethical considerations The observer’s paradox 4. Analysis: Page 119 4.1 Political contextual information on British First World War commemorative monuments The post-First World War British political climate The view from parliament A trade union perspective on British military Involvement Returning soldiers: elites’ and soldiers’ perspectives Pre-conscription, spontaneous First World War commemorative shrines The widespread commissioning of First World War Memorials Participation of elitist groups in the commissioning of commemorative war monuments The choice between symbolic and utilitarian memorials Centralising war commemoration and the issue of design Cultural influences on commemorative war monument design 5. Multimodal analysis: Page 169 5.1 The theoretical tool kit foregrounded Iconology and iconography: From Classicism to Christianity The role of bodily pose in the commemorative war monument Angle and height Materiality and colour Hallidayan-inspired tools: Speech acts and gaze Hallidayan-inspired tools: Agency, action and behavioural processes 5.2 Representations of women: Page 242 The passivization of women The semiotics of the uniform Women as personification of the nation, emotions and concepts Representations of the roles played by women in Second World War monuments 5.3 Anti-war commemoration: Page288 5.4 The future of war commemoration: Page 310 5.5 Inscriptions: Page 329 Absent nationalism 6. Discussion, conclusion and recommendations for future research: Page 357 The value of analysing commemorative war monuments using the theoretical approach adopted in this study and recommendations for future study of the topic References: Page 377 Appendix: Page 402 Chapter 1: Introduction The visual representation of war is a crucial component of war commemoration, but if we were asked to paint a picture that represented war; how it took place, its participants and its consequences, what elements and features would we include? Devastated cities, lost homes, hunger, disease, dead bodies, blood and dismembered body-parts? In fact, we regularly come across visual representations of war on public display in British villages, towns and cities. Annual commemoration rituals and ceremonies centre on these representations in the form of commemorative war monuments built predominantly during the post First World War years, but which have continued to be used as sites of remembrance for subsequent wars as new names of ‘the fallen’ are added to the growing list. Yet, these monuments feature none of the components, participants and processes